The Aug. 30, 2023 Clarkston News article about Village of Clarkston sidewalk repairs is almost exactly the same as in the city manager’s August 28 report to the city council.
The problem with both is that I have yet to see any documentation of where the 301 broken or heaved sidewalks are and what criteria was used to establish that they should be replaced.
During the budget discussions and approval, the city manager used his own arbitrary guidelines, ignoring local, state, and federal (ADA) requirements. What was used for this assessment?
Last year the city budgeted to replace the sidewalks at driveways and curb cuts in the downtown area that the city manager said were needed. These have been an issue since they were first constructed due to excessive cross slope and have only become worse over time as the surface of the pavers has deteriorated. The work was not done and now the city manager said it is much more expensive and involved than planned so they are not doing it at all. That is not a solution to a recognized safety hazard in what is probably the city’s most walked area.
The city manager also appears to be securing the services of only one contractor, for some unknown reason from Berkley, and ignoring the city’s requirements for bidding and procurement of contracted city work. The last time sidewalk work was done in 2019, there was no contract, it went far over budget, not all the known work was done, and no work was done afterward. Is history, and additional expense, going to repeat itself?
Why isn’t anyone on the city council questioning this? Who is looking out for the public interest and making the Village of Clarkston a safe place to walk, or is that not a concern of the current city council?
Cory Johnston
Village of Lake Orion